XVI (Continuing on the  explanation of the mass from where we left off from before the Easter).

Eucharistic prayers

There are 4 main ones of which 3 are mostly used. Eucharist prayer 1 is the most solemn one which has the prayers proper for Easter and Christmas and other major feasts with invocations to several saints.

II is the shortest of all and is usually used on week days and the 3^rd one is mostly used on Sundays. All the Eucharistic prayers have the mention of Mary the Mother of God but the second and the third did not have the name of St.Joseph mentioned and Pope Benedict added the invocation of st.Joseph in both the Eucharistic prayers. 4^th is also used on Sundays once in a while. In addition there are two for reconciliation and 4 others for special occasions.  What you hear mostly is 2, 3 and 1.

All of them invariably contain Epiclesis or prayer to the Holy Spirit to come down on the gifts and sanctify them. (that is the time when the server rings the bells for the first time). In the Oriental Churches the epiclesis prayer is after the consecration prayer and in the Latin rite it is before the consecration.

The celebrant lays hands on the gifts in the form a cross to bless them and makes the sign of the cross on them. In the O.T. we see that Jacob had 11 sons and there are 12 tribes. How is that?. Jacob had accepted the two sons of Joseph as his own and blessed them. So there is no tribe of Joseph but instead two of Joseph’s sons are included in the tribes of Jacob. When Joseph brought his two sons Manasseh the older one and Ephrem, the younger one to be blessed by his Father Jacob, he stretched out his right hand and laid it on the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh who was standing on the right, crossing his hands (for Manasseh was the firstborn). (Gen.48:14). Usually the older child gets more of a parent’s share and blessing. Joseph wanted Jacob to bless his older son Manasseh to be blessed more with his right hand and so he was placed on the right side of Jacob. Blessing in the form of a cross is foreshadowed even in the O.T.